Several news sources featured in the Daily Digest may limit the number of articles you can access without a subscription. However, gift articles and open-access links are provided when available. For more open access California water news articles, explore the main page at MavensNotebook.com.
On the calendar today …
- CEQA SCOPING MEETING: Proposed urban stormwater infiltration water quality control policy from 10am to 12pm. The State Water Resources Control Board Division of Water Quality (State Water Board) staff will conduct a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) public scoping meeting for the proposed urban stormwater infiltration water quality control policy (proposed policy) that will set statewide standards for urban stormwater infiltration. The purpose of the scoping meeting is to provide a forum for the public to provide input on the scope and content of the environmental information. Scoping supports the identification of the range of actions, alternatives, mitigation measures, and significant environmental effects to be analyzed in the SED. Click here for the notice of preparation. Click here to register.
In California water news today …
Sink or swim time for Salton Sea? Momentum builds for pricey lake restoration
Xavier Mascareñas / CDWR
“The long-delayed restoration of the Salton Sea, the large, ultra-briny California lake almost universally described as an “environmental disaster,’’ could be starting to finally get its sea legs. But don’t jump in and hold your breath yet. The state’s biggest lake, nearly twice the size of the majestic and immensely popular Lake Tahoe, has languished for decades as increased salinity, a sinking waterline and a foul smell have robbed it of past glory. Area residents have been exposed to respiratory and cardiovascular diseases from harmful toxins on dust blown by wind off the growing lake bed. Previous efforts to resurrect what was once a playground to Hollywood celebrities about 50 miles southeast of Palm Springs have fallen short, typically for lack of funding. … ” Read more from USA Today.
Salton Sea Management Program 2024 annual report submitted to State Water Board
“The California Natural Resources Agency has submitted its 2025 Annual Report on the Salton Sea Management Program (SSMP) to the State Water Resources Control Board, prepared in compliance with Order WR 2017-0134. The report provides specific updates on the SSMP’s activities in 2024 and planning for future projects, ongoing partnerships to help the SSMP meet its goals, community engagement, and next steps. English and Spanish versions of the report can be found at home page of the SSMP website, www.saltonsea.ca.gov under the Featured Documents heading. Work to expand the Species Conservation Habitat Project began in 2024 and continues into 2025. The State’s Salton Sea restoration and management efforts continued to show significant, demonstrable progress in 2024 — achieving key milestones and accelerating the pace of critical project delivery functions. Completing major construction at the first 4,100 acres of the largest restoration project at the Sea and with new federal funding, the SSMP broke ground to expand it by an additional 750 acres. Further expansion is being initiated to suppress dust and restore habitat on up to 9,000 acres at the south end of the Sea. … ” Continue reading from the Natural Resources Agency.
Chino Basin offers lessons in groundwater management
“While the San Joaquin Valley continues to adjust to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, others, like the Chino Basin in Southern California, have long operated under a different system — adjudicated groundwater rights. The Chino Basin in San Bernardino County was one of California’s first groundwater basins to be adjudicated in 1978. Geoff Vanden Heuvel, Director of Regulatory and Economic Affairs at the Milk Producers Council, served on the Chino Basin Watermaster Board for 20 years and explained that before SGMA, managing a basin came down to adjudication. “In the Chino Basin, you know, it became pretty clear already in the 70s that more water was being extracted than was being replenished. And so, [how] an adjudication works is, basically, some entity decides to take responsibility and sues everybody who’s pumping water because collectively that’s causing damage,” Vanden Heuvel said. “So, anybody who’s pumping water is contributing to the damaging of this resource.” … ” Read more from Valley Ag Voice.
California releases critical snowpack results amid end of wet season
“The California Department of Water Resources released the results of the final and most consequential snowpack results of the season. The April measurement is a critical marker for water managers across the state because it is usually when the snowpack reaches its maximum volume and begins to melt, according to DWR. Water supply forecasts use data from snowpack to calculate how much snowmelt runoff will eventually make its way into California’s rivers and reservoirs. The manual April snow survey was conducted at the Phillips Station in Lake Tahoe on March 28. It recorded 39.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 17 inches, 70 percent of the location’s average. … ” Read more from Fox 40.
Northern California weather: Big forecast shift as midweek storm disappears
“The potential for a large midweek storm has vanished from the Bay Area forecast. But just as the midweek storm has trended much drier, Monday and Tuesday now look much more active, with rain, wind, thunderstorms and several feet of mountain snow across Northern California. Here’s what to expect this week. A low-pressure system in the eastern Pacific Ocean is expected to inch toward the Oregon coast Monday and bring widespread rain and snow with it to the West Coast. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
A Field Note from the Central Valley: Making Fish Food in the Rice Fields
“Winter research season in the Central Valley is a muddy affair. California Trout field technicians Jennifer Kronk and Chloe Wagner suit up in waders and fishing boots at the back of a Ford F250 on a surprisingly chilly morning in March. We are meeting up with CalTrout Central Valley Regional Manager, Jacob Montgomery, for a tour of a few different research sites for the Fish Food on Floodplain Farm Fields (Fish Food) Project along the Sacramento River. The Fish Food Project is a management program that grows fish food (aquatic bugs and zooplankton) on farm fields and managed wetlands and then pumps that floodplain water, rich in those bugs and other nutrients, back into the river where the fish are. The floodplain water reconnects the river (and the starving fish confined within its leveed banks) with floodplain-derived food web resources. All the research project test sites are located along the muddy banks of the main river or in farming field canals. … ” Read more from CalTrout.
The controversial California city backed by tech elite has a new plan: boats
“In 2023, a group called California Forever, funded by Silicon Valley billionaires, introduced a splashy proposal to build a new city on tens of thousands acres of farmland it had acquired north-east of San Francisco. Residents and officials of Solano county, where the city would sit, were frustrated by what they saw as a lack of local input and concerned about wealthy outsiders with big plans to reshape their region. After months of extensive news coverage and efforts to woo over local leaders, California Forever changed track: withdrawing a ballot measure that would have fast-tracked the plans and instead seeking approval through standard county processes. This month California Forever found itself back in the spotlight for a new proposal, and one that has been greeted far more warmly – using the land it owns for the creation of a shipbuilding hub. The Trump administration has reportedly drafted an executive order to revitalize the shipbuilding industry in the US. … ” Read more from The Guardian.
In regional water news and commentary today …
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
Snowy end to the month of March for Lake Tahoe Basin
“The weather week ahead at Lake Tahoe brings a warning, a watch, and an advisory before wrapping up with sunny days in the low-50s. Until Monday at 11 p.m., a Winter Storm Warning is in effect. The National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno is forecasting heavy snow with accumulations between 1-2 feet above 6500, with 6-12 inches below 6500 feet. The highest elevations could see snowfall amounts up to three feet. Ridge winds could gust as high as 100 mph, with gusts at lake level 40 mph and waves 2-3 feet. … ” Read more from South Tahoe Now.
Threat of invasive golden mussels prompts new rules, fees for boats at Lake Tahoe
“A growing aquatic threat in California has prompted the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency to adopt stricter inspection requirements for motorized watercraft entering Lake Tahoe. TRPA’s governing board on Wednesday approved mandatory decontaminations for all visiting boats ahead of the boating season to combat the spread of golden mussels, an invasive species recently detected in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and prompted similar rules across the Central Valley. “Golden mussels are a greater threat to Tahoe than other aquatic invasive species,” said Dennis Zabaglo, aquatic invasive species program manager for TRPA. “Boaters and paddlers have a key role in protecting the waters they enjoy.” … ” Read more from the Modesto Bee.
NAPA/SONOMA
Sonoma County logging site transforms into redwood open space
“In Sonoma County, what used to be logging land is now a public open space, right next to a private club known for visits from the political elite. The newly-purchased forest land is near Monte Rio at the Russian River. It feels like a trip to the clouds with views that sweep across the peaks of the Bay Area. “You can see Mount Tam, you can see the Point Reyes Peninsula,” said Jeff Stump, form Save the Redwoods League, pointing across the horizon. Stump is director of Land Protection for the organization. He hiked us onto a bluff, that was formerly part of a long-time logging operation. It’s a massive unbroken grove, larger than a thousand football fields, laced with trails, built in part with the help of a local mountain biking club. … ” Read more from Channel 7.
BAY AREA
Marin beach covered with thick carpet of peculiar creatures
“Heavy rains left behind a thick carpet of jellyfish-like creatures at Bolinas Beach in Marin County on Sunday. Approaching the beach with his two dogs around 8 a.m. Sunday, Del Dickson said he initially thought the sand was covered in a dark layer of gravel. Closer inspection revealed that “thousands and thousands” of floating hydrozoans known as “by-the-wind sailors” — scientific name Velella velella — had washed ashore overnight. The sea animals looked from afar “like an oil slick” covering the water and sand, said Dickson, a retired professor who was visiting Bolias with his wife and two dogs. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
CENTRAL COAST
Increased water rates could soon be coming to Los Osos: Here’s what you need to know
“The Los Osos Community Services District (CSD) board will soon decide whether to increase water rates for people over the next three years. According to the CSD, the cost of water services has increased by 3% over the past year. To combat that, two options are recommended to the board: either a 3% inflation rate or a 4% inflation rate going into effect each year over the next three years. “For retired people on fixed incomes like myself and a lot of people I know, this is a big thing for rate increases,” said Jeff Symonds, a Los Osos resident. Right now, the bi-monthly base fee is $75. If approved, it would increase the amount to $80 by 2028. … ” Read more from KSBY.
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY
Water in Merced County reservoirs essential to local farmers, advocates say
“Merced County farmers pay close attention to local reservoir water levels, helping them plan for crop irrigation throughout the year. “This water is the lifeblood of our agriculture community in the area.” said Gino Pedretti III, a member of the Merced County Farm Bureau board of directors. And with Lake McClure at its maximum capacity for this time of year, farmers can plan a bit more liberally. Farmers located within the Merced Irrigation District rely heavily on Lake McClure for irrigation Pedretti said. Even farmers who boarder the Merced Irrigation District boundaries benefit. “Without that water the ag community would be decimated in the county,” Pedretti III said, adding that websites that track the inflow and outflow of water from the reservoir assist farmers in keeping track of water levels throughout the winter months. … ” Read more from the Merced Sun-Star.
Santa Barbara judge continues case involving Tehachapi water rights to May 15
“A Santa Barbara County probate case involving Tehachapi Basin water rights has been continued until May 15. The water rights petition is part of a larger case to settle probate matters related to the Bozenich Family Trust. Gary Bozenich died in February 2022. His mother, Dorothy Bozenich, died in 2002. The petitioner is the Bozenich Family Trust, with Nathaniel D. Carey as trustee. According to documents filed with the court, Gary Bozenich was once involved with a residential development project in Tehachapi and acquired the water rights at that time. … ” Read more from the Tehachapi News.
Water district board hears about pipeline repair, allocation increase and approves annual reports
“The Tehachapi-Cummings County Water District’s importation system was down for two and a half weeks earlier this year after a break in its mainline pipe, General Manager Tom Neisler told the district’s board of directors on March 26. “For the first time in our history, we had a significant portion of our mainline fail,” he said. The system was installed in the early 1970s and the mainline has had some issues in the past but none as severe as the failure in a section of 27-inch diameter pipe in the Cummings Valley. “Our crews removed almost 30 feet of pipe,” he said. “We can’t buy that pipe. A mainline pipe is not commercially available.” … ” Read more from the Tehachapi News.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
FEMA expands scope of wildfire debris cleanup, extends key ‘opt-in’ deadline
“The federal agency conducting the debris removal cleanup in the Eaton and Palisades fire zones has expanded the scope of its disaster cleanup in Los Angeles County, and extended a key deadline, giving property owners more time to “opt in” to the cleanup, which allows the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers right of entry to properties to clear sites for rebuilding, at no cost. “To allow additional time to collect ROEs from the categories of residential properties identified above, I am extending the deadline for collection of ROEs from affected property owners from March 31, 2025 to April 15, 2025,” wrote Robert Fenton, regional administrator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, in a letter to Nancy Ward, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s authorized representative at the state’s Office of Emergency Services. For days, local lawmakers and leaders had descended on both fire footprints, urging property owners to head the previous March 31 deadline, noting that the debris removal of ash and debris from sites comes for free, otherwise such owners will be on the hook for the costs. … ” Read more from the LA Daily News.
Chino: Residents may see an 18 percent sewer rate hike
“An 18 percent sewer rate increase proposed by the Inland Empire Utilities Agency (IEUA) Board of Directors has sparked debate from the cities of Chino and Chino Hills over how sewer rates are billed to residents. Chino Mayor Eunice Ulloa said it’s time for the city to push IEUA to do its own rate increases instead of going through the City of Chino for a Prop 218 election. “They can go to the public themselves, instead of using us as a safeguard,” the mayor said. The increase is being proposed to address rising costs, aging infrastructure, and ever-changing federal and state water quality regulations, according to the IEUA. Residential rates would increase from $24.79 per month to $27.02 in 2026 and $29.45 in 2027, according to the Agency. The board is expected to vote on the increase on April 16, six weeks after it was proposed at a board workshop. … ” Read more from the Chino Hills Champion.
Orange County Water District unveils resilience plan to increase future water supplies
“The Orange County Water District (OCWD) announces the release of its Resilience Plan: Adaptive Strategies for Securing Abundant and Reliable Water Supplies, a forward-thinking blueprint designed to strengthen the region’s long-term water security. “Ensuring a reliable water supply requires careful planning, innovation, and investment,” said Denis R. Bilodeau, P.E., board president. “The Resilience Plan builds on OCWD’s long history of proactive water management, providing a framework to safeguard our region’s water future.” Looking ahead 25 years, the Resilience Plan serves as a strategic guide for future investments, planning decisions, and policy initiatives that will strengthen Orange County’s water reliability and safeguard OCWD’s assets. … ” Read more from the Fullerton Observer.
Bloom or bust? Superbloom spectacle eludes California after dry winter
“It’s one of the best known rites of spring in California: extraordinary displays known as “superblooms” that coat the hillsides in an abundance of color. Some years the blooms are massive enough to draw tourists from around the world to revel in the fields, such as in 2023 when more than 100,000 people showed up on a weekend to gawk at the poppies in Lake Elsinore, a small city about an hour outside Los Angeles. But this year, not so much. Thanks to a brutally dry winter, the hills around the usual southern California superbloom hotspots have been conspicuously bare. Callista Turner, a state park ranger, could count the number of blooms on two hands as she surveyed the 8 miles of rolling hills at the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve in the final week of March, which is typically when superbloom season peaks. “We’re still waiting to see what kind of season we have,” she says. “It’s a very slow start.” … ” Read more from The Guardian.
Along the Colorado River …
Imperial Valley: After the first year of fallowing, did it work?
“After the southwest experienced the longest drought in decades, in 2024, the Imperial Irrigation District’s Deficit Irrigation Program (DIP) paid farmers $300 per acre-foot to not water alfalfa and other forage crops to conserve water in Lake Mead from IID’s yearly Colorado River entitlement. The program was funded by the federal government to mitigate Lake Mead’s water elevation levels above dead pool. This truncated DIP, which ran from Aug. 13 – Sept. 30, 2024, “involved 154,145 acres of alfalfa, Bermuda grass, and Klein grass that were not irrigated for a 49-60 day period, yielding 182,226 AF of conservation at-River with conservation payments of nearly $50 million to participants,” according to IID. According to IID’s website, “DIP incentivizes deficit irrigation practices to be performed voluntarily by farmers on land that is cultivating either alfalfa, Bermuda grass or Klein grass to reduce IID’s consumptive use of Colorado River water and create System Conservation Water.” … ” Read more from the Desert Review.
Seven Colorado River states have mere weeks to reach water agreement after long impasse
“Colorado River states have weeks remaining to resolve deep divides over how to manage the river for years to come, officials at a water conference in southwestern Colorado said Friday. “We have a real ticking-clock problem in this basin right now,” Chuck Cullom, executive director of the Upper Colorado River Commission, told an audience of almost 200 water experts, ranchers, water managers and others gathered Friday for the Southwestern Water Conservation District’s annual seminar. “Folks are working hard.” Basin officials must submit a joint management proposal by May for it to be considered in the larger federal process that will decide how the river is managed. A seven-state agreement would send a clear signal to federal decision-makers about how the basin wants to manage its own water future. But for months, basin state officials at the center of negotiations have been at odds. … ” Read more from the Colorado Sun.
Trump’s denial of Mexico’s Colorado River request sparks concerns over future water negotiations
“The Trump administration’s unprecedented decision to deny a delivery of water to Mexico is raising alarm among experts, who fear it could jeopardize future cross-border negotiations in an increasingly thirsty region. The refusal, which marked the first such rejection in 81 years, pertained to a special request from Mexico for the transfer of additional Colorado River water to the city of Tijuana. Defending this decision, the U.S. State Department accused Mexico of failing to uphold commitments to Texas included in a 1944 water-sharing treaty. Stephen Mumme, a political scientist at Colorado State University, characterized the move as both irrational and potentially harmful. Mumme, who is also a nonresident fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy, said that if he was one of the seven Colorado River basin state commissioners, he would be “really ticked off right now,” as those states are in the throes of long-term renegotiations with Mexico regarding their shared resource. … ” Read more from The Hill.
SEE ALSO: State Department’s Denial of Extra Colorado River Water for Tijuana Raises Concerns, from the Times of San Diego
In national water news today …
Federal hearing to take up hotly debated issue of wetlands protections
“In a court hearing that could have implications for the fate of federal protections for US wetlands, lawyers for an Iowa farmland owner will face off on Monday against the federal government and environmental advocates over the constitutionality of the Farm Bill’s hotly debated “Swampbuster” law. The hearing in the case pits CTM Holdings LLC against the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and several organizations that intervened in the case in support of USDA, and addresses a provision of the US Farm Bill dealing with wetlands management. First introduced by Congress in 1985 after more than half of all US wetlands had been drained or filled, the provision prohibits farmers from using designated wetlands on their property if they want to be eligible for crop insurance subsidies, farm loans and other federal benefits. The measures aims to prevent farmers from draining, filling in or otherwise altering wetlands, which provide critical habitats for fish and waterfowl, help mitigate flooding and sequester carbon. The provision currently protects about three-quarters of remaining wetlands in the contiguous US – at least 78 million acres. … ” Read more from The New Lede.
How Lee Zeldin went from environmental moderate to dismantling the EPA
“When President Trump’s cabinet secretaries clashed with Elon Musk this month over the billionaire’s chain saw approach to shrinking government, Lee Zeldin, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, made it clear where he stood. Mr. Musk had just traded barbs with Sean Duffy, the transportation secretary, and Marco Rubio, the secretary of state. Things were tense. That’s when Mr. Zeldin chimed in to say he had no complaints about Mr. Musk, according to three people briefed on the March 6 meeting. It was a telling moment for Mr. Zeldin, who has evolved from moderate blue state Republican to full MAGA warrior, taken to dismantling the agency he oversees with zeal. … ” Read more from the New York Times.
Plastics are seeping into farm fields, food and eventually human bodies. Can they be stopped?
“In Uganda’s Mbale district, famous for its production of arabica coffee, a plague of plastic bags locally known as buveera is creeping beyond the city. It’s a problem that has long littered the landscape in Kampala, the capital, where buveera are woven into the fabric of daily life. … Around the world, plastics find their way into farm fields. Climate change makes agricultural plastic, already a necessity for many crops, even more unavoidable for some farmers. Meanwhile, research continues to show that itty-bitty microplastics alter ecosystems and end up in human bodies. Scientists, farmers and consumers all worry about how that’s affecting human health, and many seek solutions. But industry experts say it’s difficult to know where plastic ends up or get rid of it completely, even with the best intentions of reuse and recycling programs. … ” Read more from the Associated Press.
